Accidental macular injury from short-term exposure to a handheld high-intensity LED light

• Published in: Heliyon 2023-08, Vol.9 (8), p.e18705, Article e18705
• Main Authors: Zhang, Li, Lei, Chun-Yan, Zhang, Zhi-Cheng, Gu, Jin-Yue, Zhang, Mei-Xia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Case Report; LED light; Macular injury; Public health
• ISSN: 2405-8440; 2405-8440
• DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e18705

To report a case of macular injury caused by short-term exposure to a handheld high-intensity light emitting diode (LED) light. Interventional case report. A patient with macular injury caused by short-term exposure to the light of a handheld high-intensity LED device. The patient was examined and followed for 3 months after exposure with ophthalmologic examinations (including funduscopy, optical coherence tomography [OCT], fluorescein angiography [FA], and multifocal electroretinography [mfERG]). The injured eye was treated with one retrobulbar injection of 20 mg triamcinolone acetonide at 5 days after exposure. Visual acuity, ophthalmoscopic, and OCT findings. 3 days after exposure, the best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of the right eye was 6/20. OCT revealed the acute stage of the injury with eminence of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). BCVA was improved to 16/20 and 20/20 at 19 and 33 days after exposure, respectively. OCT results of follow-ups at five days, 19 days, 33 days and 3 months after exposure have demonstrated the restoration process of the injury. Short-term exposure to high-intensity LED light may cause damage to the retina. As the expansion of LED use in modern life, education and supervision are of urgent need for public health.